


Martyr

by Chrisii



Category: Chicago Fire, Chicago Med
Genre: Angst, Blankets, Bromance, Car Accidents, Couch Cuddles, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Friendship, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Hypothermia, Sleep Deprivation, Snow, Unconsciousness, Whump, hurt Connor, whumpexchange
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2018-12-25
Packaged: 2019-09-26 17:19:10
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,016
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17145860
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Chrisii/pseuds/Chrisii
Summary: "Ticking and slightly fuzzy head.Bit of dizziness.General irritability.Lack of motivation to do just about anything.Uncharacteristic clumsiness.Despite being a surgeon and thus not in charge of diagnosing such trivial things, Connor Rhodes knew that he was currently freefalling into the destructive pit of sleep deprivation."The last thing he needed was to go trekking through the snow, yet here he was, trying to help out in whatever way he could. He was just so tired... nothing could happen if he just closed his eyes for a moment, right?In which Connor is aiding in a major vehicular accident and he ends up lost in the snow.





	Martyr

**Author's Note:**

  * For [cutiesonthehorizon](https://archiveofourown.org/users/cutiesonthehorizon/gifts).



> Prompt: A is sick but doesn't want to admit it, accidents.  
> I admit, there isn't much sickness cutieonthehorizon, but I hope I made up for it with the accident part!

**Martyr**

Ticking and slightly fuzzy head.  
Bit of dizziness.  
General irritability.  
Lack of motivation to do just about anything.  
Uncharacteristic clumsiness.

Despite being a surgeon and thus not in charge of diagnosing such trivial things, Connor Rhodes knew that he was currently freefalling into the destructive pit of sleep deprivation. He couldn't do his work properly if he didn't sleep, but his job was keeping him from getting a decent amount of sleep by constantly throwing cases that kept him awake trying to decide how to best approach them.

Honestly, it was like there weren't any other surgeons besides himself and Ava in the hospital. He couldn't help but bless her; she helped him on more than one difficult case. She also irritated him to no end with her stubbornness and self-righteousness at times, but one couldn't exactly be a perfect human being.

He needed to stop musing and **_focus_** on the situation at hand.

He, Will, and Ethan had been sent out to a major accident site to provide an extra set of hands because there were a lot of injured and the firehouses couldn't keep up. It was just one of those days where too many people decided to obtain an injury.

This was why Connor hated snowy days. It was bone-achingly cold and more often than not there was an accident that led to many injured civilians and even some casualties. It didn't help that he was feeling immeasurably hot despite the freezing air.

Despite having attended such sites before, the place still overloaded his senses the second he clambered out of the ambo. There were smoking pile-ups, upturned cars, thick smoke twisting towards the skies from some of them, blood stains on the snow and packaging from medical supplies lying around. But that wasn't what truly shook Connor. No, the sounds were what rooted both his and the other doctors' feet to the ground for a precious few seconds. The moans and screams of pain could be heard over the relentless honking of the horns, grating uncomfortably against their ears despite them being more than used to such sounds.

But not to this extent.  
He had only seen this amount of injuries all at once when he was in Saudi Arabia.  
He assumed that Ethan would have seen such a scene in Afghanistan.

Will seemed to take everything in within a few seconds before he was moving in one direction. Ethan took the opposite direction and Connor did a final sweep, eyes landing on what seemed to be a troubling rescue. He hightailed it once he noticed that there weren't any paramedics around. As he got closer, he recognised Severide's and Casey's teams and inwardly heaved a sigh of relief; he much preferred working with people who already knew him.

"Where are Brett and Foster?" Blood was running in rivulets down the victim's face, courtesy of a broken piece of glass probably, and Rhodes was sure that he could see another piece of glass in his abdomen. His hands needed to stop shaking if he were to secure that.

He had to get to the patient, but on one side, the car was almost inaccessible by the bridge that it was pressed up against. On the other side, a Sedan had managed to half climb on top of the car above the driver's seat, slowly but surely destroying the frame of the Ford beneath. Rhodes could see the tyre a few inches from the victim's face and couldn't help his frown as he realised that a single wrong shift could potentially make the car land on his victim and suffocate him to death.

"I need to get in there; he's bleeding out." He stated, eying possible entries. He could enter the car from the passenger's window if they held him from tumbling over the bridge.

"Even if we helped you get in, the sedan isn't secured. It can damage the frame further and then we'd have two rescues instead of one." Severide pointed out.

"Can't you use the trucks to raise it?" Rhodes said, keeping his eyes on his patient's chest. So far it was still rising and falling.

"We're using them for the five-car pile-up. Main is trying to send more teams, but it's quite busy," Casey said.

"Look, you'll probably notice if the frame starts to crumple, right?" Rhodes asked, eyes widening as he noticed the blue tinge that was spreading across the patient's lips.

"Yeah, but-"

"I need to get in there. I'll get out the second you tell me to do so, but this will become an extraction, not a rescue, if I don't stop the bleeding." Connor pulled himself to his full height, attempting to ascertain his authority even if they were infinitely more knowledgeable than him in what was safe or not in the situation.

"Fine, but don't be a martyr, Rhodes. Listen to our instructions." Severide nimbly stepped on the bridge and Connor noticed that the lieutenant had been tied to the bridge itself as well as Cruz just in case. He allowed Kelly to grab hold of his arm and stubbornly refused to look down at the raging water below - crashing through icy rivers was not really a nice prospect to think about as he slowly inched towards the car.

Within moments he was kneeling on the passenger seat, sheltered from the snow storm. His bag soon followed and Connor released a sigh before removing his gloves and slipping on plastic ones instead.

Time to work and ignore the thumping headache that was brewing behind his eyes.

He patted down the victim's pants and brought out an I.D. from the retrieved wallet, noting that his victim was named Richard. It was always better to have a name rather than to call someone 'the patient'. Richard's heartbeat was weak but thankfully still steady - Given that there were no injuries on the neck that he needed to tend, Rhodes efficiently secured the C-collar before moving on to the head injury.

Pieces of glass littered his forehead, stuck to the dried blood but not impaling him. Thank God for small mercies. Connor doused a piece of gauze in water and did his best to wipe away some of the blood so he could locate the source of the bleeding. A long gash, stretching from the left eyebrow to almost the right side of his forehead, revealed itself as the culprit and Rhodes quickly stuck some gauze on it.

Next step - Cut away the seatbelt and check his ribs. One broken. There was a huge piece of glass jutting out of his stomach as well. Rhodes frowned at the injury as he debated on how best to secure the foreign object. He couldn't exactly manoeuvre Richard due to unknown spinal injuries as well as the limited space, so he decided to rip a hole in a piece of gauze and pass it through the shard, at least securing the bottom part and stanching the bleeding to some extent.

Everything was intact with the man's legs, so Rhodes moved to Richard's arms - the right one was evidently and gruesomely broken. If they didn't get him out soon, Rhodes was going to have to amputate the arm. But he could do something to try and save it for now. He stuffed the arm with gauze and bound it as tightly as he could - he couldn't exactly slip a sling on without jarring some other injury.

"RHODES!"

The sudden call startled him more than the squealing of the metal did. It took half a minute for him to realise what was happening - the ford was slowly caving under the sedan. Rhodes reacted without thinking; he threw himself on top of Richard, aiming to support his weight on the armrest. However, he never realised that his glove, slick with blood as it was, would slip. He barely managed to let loose a curse before he threw himself sideways to ensure that he did not land on any of Richard's injuries. What remained of the window rained down on him but Connor barely felt it over the ringing of his head as he slammed against the steering wheel.

* * *

“CONNOR!” The tone suggested that it was not the first time that they had called, whoever they were. Maybe the abating ringing in his ears had something to do with him not hearing them... He definitely felt the hands on his legs as someone tried to slither in the tight space.

“I’m fine.” His tone probably wasn’t as sure as he wanted it to be, so Rhodes shook his leg free from the grip and dug the heel of his palm in his eyes in an attempt to clear the fuzziness from his vision. It worked, kind of. The handbrake was harshly poking his back and Connor winced as he levered himself up into a sitting position so he was not lying on Richard’s legs. The world danced on its axis for a while, but it settled before Connor lost his precious hold on his lunch.

“You knocked yourself out.” Casey’s matter of fact tone was annoying him, but it was quickly washed away as he noticed the blood running his arm. He’d nicked it on the glass protruding from Richard’s stomach probably. Shit. Better make sure that it wasn’t dislodged. It wasn’t, thankfully. Richard was still as stable as before, even if the roof of the car was now brushing his blond hair and the tire was a few inches closer to the gauze covering the cut on his head. Rhodes struggled with the decision of pulling Richard slightly downward so he’d be safe is the car caved further, but didn’t wish to risk aggravating the possible spinal injury. The fogginess in his mind was worse than the morning, and Connor yearned for a bed and a cup of hot cocoa instead of the many decisions that he had to make at the moment.

“How long till you get us out? He’ll die if I’m not in here to monitor him –" Casey opened his mouth to argue but Connor cut him off before he even started “-I’m not concussed, I’ll be fine.”

“Squad 5 just arrived, we’ll have you out of there in a few minutes,” Severide jumped in. He knew it was worthless to argue with Rhodes once his mind was set.

“He’s going into shock, tell them to hurry!” Rhodes felt Richard’s heart thump against the skin of his wrist and cursed as he noticed that the emergency blanket could not be used; it would be too easy to dislodge the glass shard if it was jarred once again.

He watched, making sure that Richard remained breathing at least, until the tire started going upwards and out of view – Squad 5 must have arrived. What felt like hours passed before the door on the driver’s side was wrenched open and two paramedics were lying Richard on a stretcher and hooking him to saline and putting a blanket on top of him; it already had a hole ripped into it to accommodate the shard of glass.

He rattled off the information as he scrambled out of the car as well, unprepared for the onslaught of snow as a shiver coursed through his frame. He had forgotten the snowstorm.

“Connor, let Brett take a look at you, you're bleeding.” Hermann’s and Mouch’s grips were soft yet sure, and Connor appreciated the sentiment, he really did, but he still shrugged away from their holds.

“I’m fine, there are others that need help,” He murmured, “Thanks though.” He appreciated them looking out for him, but it wasn’t necessary. He could take care of himself.

“I don’t want to rescue you later, Rhodes, so be careful,” Hermann spoke again, a warning clear in his tone. He was supported by Mouch’s hum.

“I will.” Connor smiled and took a look around again, trying to find where his help was needed.

* * *

Three assistances later, Connor was stumbling almost blindly through the snow. Someone had wiped away the blood that had apparently been trailing down his face after the initial hit, but he wasn’t sure if it was some random paramedic or someone he knew. His arm was bandaged as well.

He had escaped from their clutches as soon as he could; he’d nurse his injuries later, people needed more help for now.

He really needed a bed, and sleep, and painkillers, but he couldn’t think of that right now. He just needed to get through these rescues, then he’d think on that. He'd be okay. If he got into a warm shower, at least. He was freezing, but heat still wrapped his head in a tight grip and clouded his judgement. It was just a common side effect of exhaustion and adrenaline though.

Right?

Another scream hit his ears and he twisted a bit too fast in the other direction, almost ending up on his arse again. He had no idea where Ethan and Will were, and he didn't feel like searching for them. Focus. The scream. It was coming from his right and did not sound agonised in the least; angry? panicked? He just had to find that sole scream in the white sea of agony that was around him.

* * *

Calming patients was never easy.  
Calming patients who could see their own bone sticking out of their thigh was difficult.  
Calming patients after hearing some (stupid) paramedics say that the leg would probably be amputated was nearly impossible.

Not that Rhodes disagreed; the leg would surely need to be chopped off, but it was immensely ignorant to say it in front of the patient, especially in such a situation. The door had already been pried off and Connor stuffed gauze in his thigh and told the man he’d try to save it; he was a surgeon, he’d see what he can do, but he couldn’t promise anything when he could see almost every muscle laid bare.

Apparently, that wasn’t good enough.

The man, Clifford, let loose a guttural groan which Connor knew came from frustration and pain rather than actual anger; It was never easy to accept that your leg would be amputated.

He stuffed some more gauze and bound it before trying to move back as the paramedics brought the gurney as close as can be, but Clifford grabbed the neck of his jacket and pulled him close – his breath reeked of alcohol and Connor would not be surprised if he had caused the whole incident in the first place; he was the one who was perpendicular to the traffic and stuck to a tree that had apparently “jumped out”.

“You’re going to save my leg, Doc, or you’ll rue this day,” Clifford spat. Connor attempted to pry his hands off and could feel hands trying to pull him out of Clifford’s grip, but they clearly underestimated the strength that came with adrenaline.

“I’ll do my best,” Connor spoke through gritted teeth, hating the fact that a patient who by all means should be passed out had more strength than him. He especially detested the fact that his mind immediately gave him all the biological reasons for the phenomenon to happen.

“THAT’S NOT ENOUGH!” The sudden shove took him by surprise and Connor grunted when his head hit the steering wheel for the second time that day, this time catching the base of his skull.

Stars danced across his vision, but Connor was still aware enough to know that he was being manhandled until he was safely out of arm’s length from the victim. The firefighter was still dragging him and Connor immediately knew that there was no getting out of a trip to the paramedics this time around. However, he wouldn’t let some random firefighter see him as a damsel in distress.

“Let me go, I’m fine.” He shrugged out of the man’s grip; he was doing that a lot lately, and carefully stood on his own two feet.

“With all due respect doc, you’re barely standing on your own two feet.”

“I’ll go get help, but you need to help those that are still trapped,” Connor pointed out.

“Are you sure?” The tone was undoubtedly worried, and Connor was getting sick of hearing the concern.

“Yeah, go.”

The loss of the firefighter’s stability was immensely felt and Connor nearly staggered, but he held his own until that squad was gone. He thanked the Lord that it wasn’t anyone from Firehouse 51; he would not have gotten out of it so easily if it was. He wouldn't have gotten out of it at all, actually. He rubbed his eyes, trying to orient himself as he stumbled off into the snow; at least it had stopped falling, but it was thick and cold and moist.

He fell to his knees in a mound and some of the snow splattered on his face, its coolness a welcome reprieve from the stabbing hot pain in his head. He’d lie here for a few moments, only to cool his head and let the pain ebb off a bit, then he’d find Brett or Ethan or Will or Foster or anyone that could help him.

It was relieving; The coldness forced the pain away and his head felt light for the briefest of moments, so he opted to rest there for a while. He’d get help later, he could rest for a tiny bit.

Just a few moments.

* * *

Will was glad to finally hitch a ride back to the hospital. He wasn’t escaping, but there was a critical patient that he was not willing to leave in the hands of others until he sent her up to surgery. Ethan was with him as well, and the two of them basked in the heat of the ambulance.

Well, anywhere would feel hot when compared to hours trekking in the snow. Despite one or two burning vehicles, the air had been freezing and Will dreaded removing his gloves; he didn’t wish to see his fingernails turning blue with the sheer coldness of the air.

He’d just warm them up with a hot chocolate when he took his break.

If he took a break.

He could feel the thrum of energy from the hospital even before they entered the emergency room. He and Ethan set off running with the gurney between them, going directly to Baghdad. It was touch and go for a while, but eventually, they got a clear image of things, stabilised her as well as they could, and sent her up to surgery.

He barely had time to sanitise his hands before another gurney was coming in and he started the process all over again.

It wasn’t long before his jacket went flying – it was boiling in the emergency room as he hurried from one side to the other, treating as many patients as he could.

It only passed his mind 2 hours later that Connor hadn’t made it back yet, and that the last pair of paramedics had said that there were no victims left at the site.

Ava rounded the corner and immediately made her way to him at that very moment.

* * *

“Okay, let’s do a final check and wrap things up.” Boden’s strong voice echoed in the deserted road and House 51 nodded their assent as they split into pairs, trudging through the snow a final time to make sure that no one was left behind.

After all, they never slacked on the job.

Hermann loved his job, he truly did, but he detested the snow. Ironic, when one lived in Chicago, but he wouldn’t trade his job for one in an office just because of a little snow. He’d just warm up by the fireplace later – Cindy had undoubtedly made some soup for dinner as well, which would help even more.

He and Mouch surveyed the sides of the road, making sure that no one had stumbled off in panic and gotten lost, but couldn’t see anything out of the ordinary. Just mounds of snow that hid all the blood underneath, and probably some animals and twigs that appeared black in such a pristine background.

“There’s no one here, as far as I can see,” Mouch said.

“All units report, Connor Rhodes is not at Med, let’s make sure he’s not here.” Boden’s voice sounded from their radios, sombre and urgent.

They were both dragging their feet, feeling the evenness of the snow beneath them so as to make sure they weren’t walking over semi-buried bodies when Hermann stumbled. He easily collected himself and tried to see what had tripped him, only to discover that the black objects which he had thought were twigs were not twigs at all. It was an arm, covered by a thick jacket but no gloves.

The hands were already pale and bluish. They had to hurry.

“CAPTAIN! OVER HERE!” Hermann shouted out as Mouch radioed for Brett and Foster. Hermann didn’t pay much attention to that; he just got on his hands and knees and started pushing the snow away from the doctor's body.

Boots, thick pants, insulating (but soaked) jacket, a beard.

Rhodes.

A very pale, clearly hypothermic, Connor Rhodes.

He was lucky; the snow had not completely covered his face or obscured his breathing.

“Shit.”

There was blood on his face and on the snow below, highlighting his nearly translucent skin, but Hermann didn’t pay attention to that. He removed his gloves and pressed his fingers against Connor’s throat, hoping to feel the heartbeat there.

It was there, but so weak that Hermann thought that he was imagining it.

But there, it beat again.

A weak burst of air escaped Connor’s lips.

He was alive, for now.

“Remove his jacket, it’s soaked.” Casey was suddenly there, propping the surgeon up and allowing Hermann to pull the jacket off. Severide’s jacket dropped from above and Hermann and Mouch wasted no time in wrapping Rhodes in it, hoping that its warmth might start to revive him a little.

“Get him here,” Brett ordered, pulling the gurney close to them. Cruz stepped in, effortlessly depositing the surgeon on the tiny mattress before Foster swaddled him in blankets. He was in the ambulance before Hermann could blink.

* * *

“THEY FOUND RHODES, PREPARE BLANKETS, OXYGEN, AND WARM SALINE – HE’S HYPOTHERMIC!” Maggie’s voice echoed in the emergency room, prompting the doctors into action as they made sure that all supplies that would be needed were close at hand.

Will was frozen. No pun intended. He had not realised Connor was not with them until hours after he and Ethan made it back to Med – nobody had realised that he had not made it back. What kind of friends were they? Had Ava not come down to search for him… they might have left him in the snow. He would have died alone.

“WILL!” Ethan was in front of him, hands firmly grabbing his shoulders. “Snap out of it, we need to take care of him.” His voice was gentle but stern, “It was a mistake, nobody’s fault. Come on.” The veteran slapped him lightly, knocking Will out of his reverie just before Natalie passed him, arms laden with blankets.

Right. Hypothermia.

He barely had time to think before Brett and Foster were running in, a gurney between them. The body lying on top of it was too still for someone who had just been lying in the snow. No shivering - Severe hypothermia. Shit.

He must have gone on autopilot just then because all he could remember was Ava– screw conflicts of interest, all of them were biased in this case. She cut Rhodes’ pants off, ripping the sodden fabric away from his too cold skin and pushing hot compressors against his feet before wrapping his lower body in blankets. The firefighter’s jacket was gently removed and given to the paramedics before they cut off Connor’s shirt and attempted to hear his heartbeat.

They knew it was beating; the EKG was beeping slowly yet reassuringly somewhere in the room, but an EKG wouldn’t reveal troubling lungs. Will felt his shoulders loosen as he realised that there was nothing wrong; his heart was sluggish because of the cold, but that was nothing they couldn’t fix. Someone had managed to insert an IV in Connor’s arm -April probably-, and a mask was hiding most of his face; warm oxygen presumably. He bandaged the wound on Connor's arm properly - how did he get such a wound? - before Ethan and Natalie wrapped him completely in blankets and everybody stepped back, staring at the stats.

There was no miraculous change, no sudden improvement. It was completely expected and utterly disappointing. His temperature remained a steady 88.

Will couldn’t help it when his frustration reached a boiling point and he left the room, unable to continue looking at the (too) still form.

* * *

Eventually, Ava was the only one that remained by his bedside. She slouched ungracefully in the chair that Maggie had conveniently brought in. It wasn’t the normal plastic chair – it probably came from the nurse’s lounge. It was not completely comfortable, but at least it was cushioned.

Ava mentally slapped herself.

Connor was fighting to warm up and here she was, musing about her chair. She couldn’t even grab his hand; it was buried beneath an innumerable amount of blankets that trapped his body heat and helped his core-temperature rise little by little. The hot packs placed in strategic places led to weird bumps beneath the blankets, but she knew that they’d be removed soon.

At least he had started shivering a while ago, his body violently moving beneath its entrapments. She knew it was a good sign, but she hated hearing his teeth chattering and see his unconscious frown as the pains made themselves known even in his unconsciousness.

Natalie, Will, Ethan, April, Sharon, Maggie, and even Charles were continuously coming in, checking on him before leaving when they noticed that Ava didn’t want company. It was irrational, but she hated feeling the room so crowded when there wasn’t a need to.

It just made the fact that Connor was still asleep even more blatant.

She stared at his face, utterly mesmerized by the semi-hard jaw. It was her favourite part of his face when it wasn't covered with two-day-old stubble. She allowed her gaze to travel further upward, ignoring the stitched cut on his forehead that was hidden beneath a piece of gauze and settling on the dark circles beneath his eyes. He hadn't slept properly in days; it was evident in his moods - he was always crankier when running short on energy. 

Didn't make him less endearing to her.

She would have still kissed him if there wasn't the mask in the way. His lips were immensely dry; nearly cracking, but at least they had lost their blue tinge. He was going to have a stroke over them; he always prided himself on his appearance. She couldn't help her snort; why was she thinking about such mundane things? 

Will came in again, the back of his hand immediately finding its position against Connor’s forehead. It was still cold, but considerably warmer than before. Ava knew; she was constantly checking, making sure that he didn’t take a turn for the worst right underneath her nose. There was the thermometer in Connor’s ear again, telling them good news – his temperature had risen to a solid 94.

He was about to leave again (she understood his guilt, but couldn’t find it in herself to comfort him even if she knew it wasn’t his fault) before Connor made a sound. It was small, nearly completely muffled by the oxygen mask, but after hours in the nearly utterly silent room, it was like music to Ava’s ears, and apparently Will’s too.

“Connor? Wake up, please.” She was by his head in a second, one hand pushing back his hair and the other resting on his chest. Will was on the other side, such an expectant look on his face that it was almost funny had the situation not been so dire.

Connor’s eyes fluttered weakly, dull greys flickering beneath their lids before roaming around the room slowly. They settled on Ava with difficulty, confusion clouding the colour before drifting over to Will.

There was no recognition or awareness in them.

“Wha’?” A barrage of coughing followed the attempted syllable and Will immediately slipped his arm behind Connor’s back, propping the surgeon up and loosening the blankets in the process. Ava was at a loss for a second before she grabbed the pitcher of warm water from the bedside table and pouring a glass.

Connor was left breathing heavily as the coughs subsided and she gave him a moment before pulling the mask away, replacing it with the glass of water and tipping it slowly into his mouth.

“Drink, Connor.”

She pulled it away before long and replaced it with the mask, frowning worriedly as it fogged up immediately. Will removed the warm packs before carefully swaddling him in blankets again, trying to reduce the shivering even if he knew that it was a good sign.

“You’re hypothermic, you’re at Med,” Ava assured him, keeping one hand on the side of his neck – it was reassuring to hear his pulse beneath her fingers.

Connor frowned, confusion evident in the depths of his eyes before they slipped shut again, his body relaxing as he fell into a deep sleep.

At least it was better than unconsciousness.

* * *

Will and Ethan joined her after their shift ended, with Natalie dropping in for a few moments before leaving because Owen’s sitter could not stay any longer. Ava could not bring herself to care any less about that, but she appreciated Ethan and Will staying with her; she doubted she could have passed much more time alone with his shivering form. At least the shivers had died down considerably as his core temperature got closer to normal, and she was glad to see the healthy, rosy hue to his cheeks that washed away the eerie paleness and gauntness that had likened him to a corpse for the last few hours.

He was shifting underneath the blankets (the other doctors had removed two of them), small uncoordinated movements that were probably the result of weird dreams rather than actual, conscious movement.

He had to be conscious in the first place for that to happen. But she had to focus on the positive side of things; his breathing was better - the mask was gone, replaced by a nasal cannula, and his heart was beating steadier than before, as if it had thawed over time.

"He's an asshole, you know,"  Will spoke up and Ava was ready to butcher him before he continued, "Always letting people wait on him." Then she understood, Will couldn't stand the silence either.

"We're the assholes for leaving him there in the first place," Ethan muttered, his eyes not moving once from the monitors.

"You had patients, he's not a child," Ava said, allowing kindness to seep into her voice. Her reassurance was nothing compared to seeing Connor awake, but at least it would help ease some of their tension. Hopefully.

"I called the firehouse. Severide told me that he refused treatment for the cut on his head, then they lost track of him. He never even got his bag from the last patient he treated; Casey found it in their final search." Ethan shrugged, not knowing why he was telling them the information but knowing that it needed to be out there - he couldn't keep all of it on his chest.

Connor seemed to sense the fact that they were talking about him before Ava or Will could respond to Ethan's claim. He shifted slightly, frowning as the blankets hindered anything he attempted to do. They remained quiet as Connor blinked sluggishly, adjusting to the lighting in the room before looking around.

His eyes widened fractionally when he caught sight of the trio around his bed, and Ava almost burst out laughing - he was like a deer caught in the headlights, or a toddler caught sneaking his hand in the cookie jar.

"Hey, Connor." Will's voice was soft but for the hint of reprimand that still made Connor flinch as he attempted to disentangle the blankets.

"Leave the blankets be, you still needed them after your impromptu nap in the snow." Ethan carefully slid his stethoscope beneath the blankets, making sure that everything was in order before pushing the thermometer in his ear.

"Couldn't you get a normal thermometer?" Connor frowned, trying to inch away from the device but finding himself held in place by Ava and the blankets.

"Couldn't you have sought help?" Ethan wasn't angry. He wasn't chiding or scolding. He was concerned; the worry in his voice lurked beneath the words much like Ethan himself lurked in the room, making sure that Rhodes was going to pull through.

"I'm fine." Connor shrugged, the movement somewhat too sharp and not all there at the same time.

"Your core temperature finally came up properly, so we can remove the heating blankets, but you have a bit more to go before you can say you're fine, Rhodes." Ethan pulled away two of the blankets as well, going out to put them in the laundry chute. Will followed after him with the excuse of getting a nurse and closed the door behind him.

"You're an idiot," Ava declared. There was no heat in her words, only relief and something akin to frustration.

"Not you too." Rhodes sighed, shifting uncomfortably in the bed as he realised that he couldn't get out of the conversation.

"You weren't even shivering, Connor." Ava pointed out, releasing a sigh even if she still felt somewhat tense and agitated after the whole fiasco. Seeing him right in front of her was helping though.

"I'm fine now." He claimed, resolutely picking at the loose threads of the blankets.

"Thank the Lord for that. Be careful, Rhodes, please." The please got to him more than anything else; she never begged for anything, much less for something like this, but the worry had mentally exhausted her and suddenly Ava was somewhat bitter about the whole thing.

"I will, I'm sorry." He managed to remove his hand from beneath the blanket and reached out to her, uncaring of the IV still stuck in the back of his hand. She reached out, steadying his arm and relieved to finally feel his hand closing around hers, and promptly burst out crying as she realised that he really was going to be just fine - his hands were colder than usual and slightly shaky and disoriented, but he'd be fine.

The nurse knocked on the door before she could truly show him how relieved she was to hear him talking again.

* * *

Connor could still feel the chill in his bones even through his hoodie. He knew that it was normal for hypothermic victims to remain feeling cold for a time after their temperatures were back to normal, but it was still annoying to feel his fingers go numb with his perceived coldness, only to realise that they were actually boiling when Ava (with her somewhat cool hands) brushed their fingers together. She was refraining from actually holding his hand due to him feeling cold, even if he assured her repeatedly that he was fine.

He got the feeling that she didn’t really believe him, especially because she was insisting on driving him home right at the moment.

“You need to rest, and you won’t do that when you’re alone. I know you more than you think Connor.” Connor knew that there was no arguing with that tone, but it didn't mean that he wasn't annoyed at the coddling.

"I can take care of myself, Ava." He snapped, cursing the tremor that went through him.

"If you could, you wouldn't be sitting on a hospital bed." She rebutted, her eyes narrowing as he huffed and rolled his eyes. "Look, I just want to make sure you're truly fine, then I'll give you all the alone time you wish to lick your pride." She sat down on the chair, watching him quietly as he tied his shoes.

"Fine, as long as we grab a pizza on the way." A soft smile broke through his frustration and Ava smirked before handing him the discharge papers.

"I'm just going to go clock out, I'll meet you by the doors, okay?"

"Yeah, sure." Connor nodded as he rubbed his face; he was still exhausted despite having done nothing for the past two days but lie in bed, soaking in the warmth and riding out muscle cramps that came with thawing out.

He hated to worry Ava, and he had the feeling that she was still terrified after seeing him lying there. He knew how bad hypothermia could get, and thanked his stars that Hermann had found him when he did. According to what he said when the firehouse visited, he'd be dead if they hadn't found him during that search.

He had thanked them profoundly before they left, and his nightmares had been of him being entrapped in the snow from then on. Ava seemed to notice when that particular nightmare plagued him; he always found an additional blanket being tucked around him even if he wasn't even cold.

It was comforting to have someone take care of him, even if he was embarrassed when Will had to steady him the first time Connor stood up to go to the bathroom. He got past it when Ethan witnessed his first nightmare and had to hold him after waking him up; Connor was shaking so badly it was almost like he was having a seizure. 

Maggie hugged him so hard that he felt his lungs emptying when he made it to the E.D.. She was soon joined by April as well, and he could feel the blush rising in his cheeks as all of them expressed their relief in lines such as "glad to see you on your feet" or "glad to see you're warmed up now". He laughed at the latter, thanked the former.

Ava thankfully arrived within minutes, smoothly whisking him away from the hubbub and steering him to her car. He didn't mean to fall asleep on the way to his apartment, but he still dozed until she hit his arm to tell him they were there.

"You didn't get the pizza." He said as he got out, pulling his beanie down over his ears to protect them from the cold air.

"You need soup and sleep, we'll order pizza later," Ava said as she pushed him through the lobby, to the elevator, and to the sofa. The cushions were comfortable. And warm.

He obediently sipped at the warm liquid that pushed against his lips -some kind of tea-, but refused anything else. He was just too sleepy. Ava seemed to realise that and pushed him down to lie on his side, going the extra mile to remove his shoes and prop his feet on the sofa before draping a blanket over him. He reached out, grabbing her wrist before she could move away.

His message was clear.

"I'm not leaving, I'm just grabbing a book and the TV remote." She said softly. True to her word, he felt the cushions give in under her weight seconds before she gently lifted his head and laid it on her lap, her hands brushing through his hair.

It felt warm and cosy and nice.

He was asleep within seconds.

* * *

He found a pizza waiting for him when he woke up just before dinner and couldn't help his grin as he wolfed down his portion. He was sick of living on hospital food, and the pizza gave him some energy back.

Enough energy for a chance to have a proper movie night with Ava.

"That will have to wait." She spoke up, a sly grin tugging at her lips when she saw his confused expression. "The others are coming over; they wanted to make sure you're all right as well."

Connor raised his eyebrows but didn't have a chance to comment before there was a tentative knock on his front door.

"Go wash," was all Ava said before going to open the door.

* * *

The warm shower did wonders to him and Connor relished the comforting warmth that remained just below his skin as he buried himself in a thick hoodie and a pair of sweatpants. He couldn't help his snort as he made his way to the living room; there were blankets everywhere (He didn't think they were all his), covering both the couch and the floor in front of the T.V.

Home Alone was already loaded on the screen and he rolled his eyes at the childish choice.

"Come on Connor, embrace your inner child," Will spoke up, bouncing Owen on his knee. Manning was seated beside him, undoubtedly admiring the view of Will with her child.

"It's a classic man, don't disrespect it." Ethan piped up from where he was texting. April hummed her agreement.

Maggie just raised her eyebrows at him and patted the spot next to Ava, who was openly laughing at his disbelief. He shook his head and collapsed next to her, not commenting as the others promptly swaddled him in blankets once again, making sure that there wasn't an uncovered part of his body except his face.

He rolled his eyes once again but couldn't help his smile as Maggie started the movie and bade everybody to be quiet.

Soon enough, all that could be heard was the crunching of the popcorn and Connor's soft breaths as he dozed, surrounded by people who he had come to consider as friends, even if their antics sometimes annoyed him to no end.

At the least, they left behind a feeling of warmth that Connor had long since forgotten (and that no amount of snow could make cold), and he couldn't help the small smile as he realised that there were no other people he would rather spend the holidays with.

* * *

* * *

 

**Author's Note:**

> MERRY CHRISTMAS MY DEAR READERS! (sorry didn't post something VERY lighthearted XD)
> 
> I hope you enjoyed this; It was my first time entering this exchange and it has been so much fun to write this and receive something in exchange.
> 
> cutiesonthehorizon, I truly hope you enjoy this dear, it's been a treasure talking with you secretly while writing this, and hope it is to your liking! Also, it was fun to discover that I was a fan of your work without knowing; gotta admit, was a bit hilarious on my end XD
> 
> Feel free to leave reviews guys; anything you especially liked, maybe disliked, any pointers - I accept just about anythin <3 
> 
> Disclaimer: I do not own CM or CF, never will.


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